Simon Curtis has just unveiled on Twitter his new album cover to his stellar collection of tracks "8-Bit Heart" which was shot by edgy visual artist – Tyler Shields. Any second now, the album itself will pop up on Twitter as a free download and if you are into computerized beats which pack somewhat of a powerpop punch, then you really should be following Simon on Twitter to experience this epic little tale of a lost robot boy who is on a quest for real love.
I've had the pleasure of listening to "8-Bit Heart" for a few months now and it wasn't until this morning that I realized that what Simon is doing here is re-inventing a whole new genre of pop that we haven't seen much of lately – and that is "robo-pop". We aren't talking Kraftwerk here people, but what we are talking about is modern day pop sounds which are comprised by samples from the early Atari and Nintendo game consoles, to the blips and bleeps of old keyboards, to even elevator noises. This all may sound a bit nerdy for some, but in actuality – all you need to do is listen to Robyn's new single "Fembots" to garner a similar comparison. Damn, you may even find the artwork very similar and that is just a little too eerie considering the two artists have never worked together.
I'm really excited for all of you to hear "8-Bit Heart" when it comes out – it's brought me a lot of joy over the past few months and I think you'll find that if you prick the hard surface of this robot boy's cylon shell, it will bleed with an outpour of emotions from anger, yearning and frustration and ultimately love – and that is something that we haven't seen too much of with robo-pop ever since it was conceived as a music genre. After one listen, there is no doubt in my mind that you'll fall in love with this android boy.